IRON MOUNTAIN
Linn County - Willamette National Forest - 13S-5E-36
1929: An Alidade established.
April 22, 1931: "Practically 100 per cent visibility over the forests of the Santiam district will be made possible by the emergency lookout stations which will be added to the forest patrol service this year, according to C. C. Hall, forest supervisor.
Iron Mountain will be one of the eleven new emergency stations. This post will be connected with the forest telephone system that will link it up with the fire control office at Fish Lake." (Statesman Journal)
August 19, 1933: "A new lookout house is being built on Iron mountain." (The Eugene Guard)
July 14, 1939: "Iron Mountain is a large jagged rock, situated in very rough country. It overlooks the upper end of the new South Santiam highway and can be seen very clearly from Rabbit Camp guard station. It is noted for its abundant supply of huckleberries growing near this peak. The location is Township 13S and Range 5E. Iron Mountain has an elevation of 5476 feet. Alfred E. Nesbitt will be the lookout fireman for the season. The lookout is reached by driving 22 miles and then hiking 1 1/2 miles." (Albany Democrat-Herald)
September 5, 1940: "Leo Dewey, Lebanon man who is fire lookout on precipitous Iron Mountain in the Cascadia district, got his Sunday paper delivered in an unique and most welcome manner last Sunday via air mail. An airplane first made it appearance in the morning, circling about the station a few times while pilot and lookout exchanged waves, then headed in the general direction of Sweet Home. A few hours later the ship returned and dropped out a package bundled in white cloth, to land 100 feet below the ledge. Inside was the paper, and a note saying: 'Hello, Lookout: Thought you might want a copy of the paper to read--be seeing you.' It was signed by Eddie Campbell, a Prineville automobile dealer." (The Lebanon Express)
February 1976: The lookout totally destroyed in a windstorm.
April 1, 1976: "The U.S. Forest Service has announced plans to restore a popular lookout station that was destroyed by high winds in early February.
The lookout, Iron Mountain, is located 35 miles east of Sweet Home on Highway 20. Not only was it one of only three manned lookouts on the Willamette National Forest, it also perched atop one of the region's most spectacular wildflower areas. It was easily accessible by a trail.
Destruction of the tower was total.
Now, the U.S. Forest Service plans to move a lookout tower from Herman Peak in the Siuslaw National Forest to Iron Mountain.
Starting in April, the Herman Peak tower will be dismantled and trucked to a point near Iron Mountain. From there, the tower will be ferried up in sections by a helicopter and put in place.
This activity will take place sometime in early July. That timing may coincide with the peak season of the flower blooming and safety precautions will be taken, forest officials said.
The Herman Peak lookout, six miles east of Sea Lion Caves, is considered expendable because of advances in aerial detection methods." (Eugene Register-Guard)
August 18, 1990: "The body of a U.S. Forest Service fire lookout was recovered Friday from Iron Mountain, where he apparently fell to his death on Thursday. Linn County Sheriff Art Martinak said the body of Micheal R. Robin, 39, of Lebanon, was found at the base of a 500-foot cliff near his lookout cabin. Robin was last heard from on a Forest Service radio Thursday morning. Personnel at the Sweet Home Ranger Station became concerned as the day wore on and hiked up to the cabin. A helicopter spotted Robin's body about 6 p.m. Martinak said Robin may have fallen from a weather station near his lookout." (The Register-Guard)
2007: The lookout was declared a health hazard and torn down, to be replaced by a platform for hikers to view the surrounding country.
STATION DESCRIPTION
DESCRIBED BY US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 1955
LOCATED ABOUT 29 MI SE. OF MILL CITY, 16.5 MI E. OF CASCADIA,
10.5 MI SSW. OF JCT. OF U.S. HWY. 20 AND STATE HWY. 222. ON
PROMINENT TOP KNOWN LOCALLY AS IRON MTN.
TO REACH FROM CASCADIA RANGER STATION, DRIVE 23 MI E. ON U.S.
HWY. 20 TO USFS BLDG. KNOWN LOCALLY AS RABBIT CAMP, FOLLOW TRAIL
N. UP MOUNTAIN TO TOP AND LOH. A 45-MINUTE PACK.
STATION MARK--CENTER OF USFS LOH.